Game Design: But Wait, There’s More!

One of my passions is finding new uses for things I already enjoy. It’s one of the reasons I like modding my board games and card games. I want to hone them to a specific use, and then find every possible way to get even more out of a thing (especially the games I enjoy). So it should be no secret that one of my design goals is to give every card in the deck multiple uses.

It starts with your Destiny. Every card in your deck is one of your “life points.” That the first and most important role they serve — the buffer between you and the end of the game. Every card has a secondary purpose as well — they’re the resources you use to sponsor and activate the cards you use to win the game. And they fill both of these roles by A) being part of the deck, and b) being numbered from one to thirteen.

I’ve been thinking about how to incorporate resource-saving methods into basic gameplay. I’ve been toying with the idea of a “cycling” mechanic, which would allow a player to move cards from the top of their deck to the bottom in lieu of drawing them. It’d be an example of “prevention” at the top of the pyramid. No cards go to resources, and thus, no energy leaves the system to generate the effect.